JR Interview with Dusty May

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Auto Trader. It is the JR Sport Brief Show here with you on CBS Sports Radio. March is for madness and not too long ago we saw a mad ending as Florida, Atlantic, the Owls, they knock off Memphis and they gave us a little bit of a heart attack in the process. They went 66 to 65. Nick Boyd won it with a layup with two seconds left on the clock and right now we are being joined by the head coach of Florida, Atlantic.

He also happens to be the Conference USA Coach of the Year, Dusty May. Dusty, how are you? How's your blood pressure? Everything's good, JR. On to the next. On to the next. Well, before we move on to the next, I want to talk to you about this game today. It was a tight one.

It was a close one. What the heck did you tell your team prior to this process, especially knowing that they haven't been here in like 20 years? Well, I think we had a 20-game winning streak and our league was really tough this year, so we learned early on that there was no moment that was too big for our guys. We went into the University of Florida when they were playing great basketball and won in their gym. And then Conference USA, we played really well in our conference tournament.

So other than the gym just being significantly bigger, we didn't feel like our guys would be phased by it at all. We knew if we took care of the basketball and found a way to rebound, we'd have a chance to win. Dusty May is joining us.

Head Coach of Florida, Atlantic. You have basically set every record this past season for wins and victories, etc. How do you keep the team kind of humble through this process knowing that they're the best that this school has ever seen? Well, the unique thing about this team is when we do anything related to the game, whether it's film, weights, practice, walkthroughs, they have great focus and attention to detail. They really value the details of the game because it helps them win.

And outside of practice, sometimes as an older adult and a coach, you may be worried they're on social media too much or they're doing this too much or whatever the case. And we just kind of just said, you know what? These guys, when it's time to work, they're always ready to work. They're prepared. And so we just kind of let them be themselves.

And when they get together, they hold each other accountable and just have a great work ethic and work capacity. Dusty May is joining us. Head Coach of FAU just beat Memphis, the Tigers 66 to 65.

This is going to get replayed over the next, I don't know, almost 48 hours. That layup by Nick Boyd to win it with the time almost expiring. He didn't have the greatest of shooting nights. Can you tell us about him and maintaining the confidence to even go out there and do that for the whole country to see? Well, he's one of the hardest working players I've ever been around. He's obsessed with working on his game, working on his body in the weight room.

So he deserves it. So I think even when he's having an off shooting night, his confidence is never shaken because when you put in that much work, you just have a belief. And even though his stat line wasn't wasn't great tonight, he stepped up and made a couple big shots throughout the game at the end of the shot clock that we needed all those points. So he was, you know, I thought he defended well. I thought he did a lot to help us win, but most importantly with Nick, he's a great leader.

So he brings a lot of tangibly even when he's not shooting his best. Penny Hardaway gave you and your team a lot of credit in victory. What can you say about how Memphis fought and was prepared out there as well? Well, I can't say enough good things about Coach Hardaway. I watched them play a lot last year because I knew one of the players.

He's from Boca. He played high school basketball with my son, so I follow them closely and they had a really good season, almost beat Gonzaga, but they just didn't seem as together as this year's group. Well, this year's group, they cover for each other. They've got two really dynamic scores that they play through, but they also have some role players that step up and make good plays and they have a new group.

So they evolve throughout the season. They adjust to their roles and they played a really good first half after we got off to a good start. So I can't say enough about Coach Hardaway. I've seen him in practice, so I know what type of basketball coach he is and we are fortunate to get out of there tonight with a win. And FAU, you guys are going to be moving on to the AAC. This was like a warm-up to seeing Memphis more often, isn't it? Yeah, as a warm-up against the premier program going forward in the AAC with Houston leaving and Cincinnati departing.

So yeah, we wanted to see where we were as far as tout level and things like that, but we weren't thinking too far ahead. We wanted to find a way to win this game. Dusty May is here with us. We're getting ready to wrap up with you.

I don't want to hold you too long. Head coach, Florida Atlantic, Fairleigh Dickinson is next. They are the bell of the ball right now based on what they did earlier on Friday in knocking off Purdue. What do you tell your team to just not think that they're just going to be pushovers there? Well, they know that. They watched FDU against Purdue and we got to the arena. We encouraged our guys to go out and just soak in the environment and get comfortable being in that environment. Our gymnasium is not very big, so they went out so they watched them play and obviously they're scrappy, they're quick, they're aggressive, they play to their system to a tee. Our guys respect them and Nick Boyd's actually from New Jersey, so he knows a lot of their players. So we know how difficult it's going to be on Sunday and it's going to take a great effort and we're going to have to get past this big win tonight quickly because there's a lot of preparation.

Dusty May, last question for you. There's going to be a lot of folks who have learned about you over the past 24 hours. There's going to be so many more people watching you over the weekend and on Sunday. How would you describe your team for someone who's going to watch them for the first time? A true team.

Our staff, players, everyone in our program is truly connected and really care about each other and will sacrifice whatever is necessary for the team to find a way to win. I appreciate that. Well, good to see you I appreciate that. Well, good luck taking on Fairleigh Dickinson. Thank you so much, Dusty.

Good luck, okay? Thank you, JR. No doubt about it. That was a conversation with Dusty May, Conference USA Coach of the Year. His squad, they just knocked off Memphis 66 to 65. Last year, you may have made some smart decisions and you may have made some not so smart decisions.

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